Melbourne in January

Melbourne in January is a good thing.....not only are we enjoying summer in our land down under, but also we have a constant stream of great bands arriving on our shores.

The New Year kicked off with a beautiful show from José González on the 2nd. He played a fairly subdued, but beautiful gig. (featuring a particularly killer version of fold which completely bowled me over.)

Unexpectedly the next night I found myself at The Go! Team playing HiFi bar in the city. Not usually a band I'd go and see, but that kind of attitude would have been my own loss. It was a tight, energetic and extremely fun set.

Seeing these two acts back to back was an interesting thing. I wouldn't say before that I was the biggest fan of Go Team! and their second album did not (for me) reach the heights of Thunder, Lightning, Strike. However, the energy of their live gig and the connection they made with the sweaty, but appreciative crowd at HiFi Bar really won me over. It was just a really fun musical night out, and it made me want to go home and listen to them again. José on the other hand, whilst singing gorgeously and performing impeccably, did not quite live up to the expectation that Veneer and In Our Nature had instilled in me. There was just something missing....maybe the lack of connection with the audience, maybe it was just all too perfect and precise. It seemed at times not like a live performance. So is this a bad thing? Is he to be faulted for being flawless? Of course not. On the whole the concert was like I said, gorgeous, but it did leave me wanting a little bit more, a little bit more of him, his self, his humanness.....which is not entirely what going to a live music performance is about, but it does definitely leave an impression.

At any rate, this is a small quibble. The year has started off well, and there are many many more gigs filling up the calendar. Highlights of the next few weeks will be Sufjan Stevens, The National and Arcade Fire ....and that's just the beginning!

Stay tuned for a gig filled summer